NPNA Encouraged by Budget Proposal That Gets Closer to A More Just and Effective Immigration System
NPNA Encouraged by Budget Proposal That Gets Closer to A More Just and Effective Immigration System WASHINGTON – The White House today submitted toplines for its fiscal 2022 discretionary budget request, including funds to address backlogs in immigration courts and naturalization proceedings that affect millions of people, as well as for expanding…
As Federal Agency Heads Review Naturalization Barriers, NPNA Offers Recommendations on Making Citizenship Accessible to All
As Federal Agency Heads Review Naturalization Barriers, NPNA Offers Recommendations on Making Citizenship Accessible to All WASHINGTON – By this Saturday, the departments of Homeland Security, Justice, and State must develop a plan to improve the naturalization process, as required by an executive order signed by President Joe Biden on Feb. 2. As…
National Partnership for New Americans: Executive Order Promoting Voting Presents Opportunities for USCIS to Engage Naturalized Citizens
This weekend, on the 56th anniversary of Bloody Sunday, President Biden signed an executive order to expand voting access across all federal agencies, including U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
NPNA Applauds Reversal of Civics Test, Urges USCIS to Move on Backlog and Naturalize 2 Million by 2022
Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it was reversing a controversial civics test that the Trump administration put in place just weeks before it left office. The 2020 civics test was condemned by advocates as a ploy to keep citizenship out of reach for those with limited English proficiency, was criticized for being formulated with limited community and expert input, as well as for featuring inaccurate questions and answers. One such question indicated that members of Congress only represent citizens and not the entirety of their districts, including undocumented people or immigrants of other statuses.
NPNA Applauds Biden Administration’s Strong Start on Immigration; Urges Important Next Steps to Uplift Immigrants and Refugees
Today, President Joe Biden is expected to issue a series of executive actions that aim to expand access to citizenship and re-establish the United States as a nation of refuge that treats newcomers humanely, regardless of the circumstances of their arrival to our borders and shores. The actions also include reviewing all barriers to citizenship and legal immigration, including the public charge rule; taking steps towards streamlining the naturalization process; and establishing a Task Force of New Americans, within the White House, to coordinate a federal policy to include immigrants. The actions signaled a much-needed rejection of the cruel policies instituted by the previous administration and pave a path for meaningful and sustainable improvements to America’s immigration policy.
National Partnership for New Americans on USCIS Announcement that Agency Won’t Increase Fees
Today, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it would not go forward with a proposed regulation that would have increased the citizenship application fee from $640 to over $1,100, among other application fee increases, and would have eliminated most fee waivers for low-income and working-class immigrants to apply.
NPNA Welcomes Day 1 Immigration Reform Bill, Administrative Reforms Also Needed
On the first day of the new administration, President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled the U.S. Citizenship Act of 2021, which creates a path to citizenship for millions of undocumented immigrants, including for DACA and TPS recipients and agricultural workers, strengthens family immigration, addresses roots causes of migration, expands access to asylum and refuge, and bolsters due process protections in immigration court.
New Civics Test is Last-Minute Effort from Trump Administration to Cut Off Access to Citizenship
As the Trump administration nears its final days, it is leaving as it arrived: by limiting access to citizenship through a series of policies and practices that make it more difficult for millions of eligible immigrants to navigate the long naturalization process.
Newly Naturalized New Mexico Can Sway the Outcome of 2020 Election, Somos, El CENTRO and NPNA Report Finds
New Mexico – Around 18,000 people have naturalized in New Mexico since 2014, according to a report released today by El CENTRO Poder y Acción, El CENTRO de Igualdad y Derechos’ new sister 501c4 advocacy organization in Albuquerque, Somos Acción, the 501c4 sister organization to Somos un Pueblo Unido in New Mexico, CAFé Acción, sister organization to NM Comunidades en Acción y de Fe in Las Cruces, and National Partnership for New Americans (NPNA). These new citizens and potential voters, the majority of whom are women and originally from Mexico, can make an outsized impact on local and congressional elections, where margins are tight.
Coalition of Immigrant Rights Groups Call for Stronger Action by Congress to Hold USCIS Accountable
Coalition of Immigrant Rights Groups Call for Stronger Action by Congress to Hold USCIS Accountable WASHINGTON – Today, the Senate passed a Continuing Resolution (CR) to keep the federal government funded at current levels through Dec. 11, after negotiations broke down around a legislative package in response to the coronavirus pandemic and economic crisis….